Background and career
Paul Christian Scheer (born January 31, 1976) is an American comedian, actor, filmmaker, and podcaster. Scheer is best known for his roles in FX/FXX's The League and Showtime's comedy series Black Monday. Scheer also co-created and starred in MTV's Human Giant and Adult Swim's series NTSF:SD:SUV::, and has had recurring roles on ABC's Fresh Off the Boat and HBO's Veep. He is also known for voicing Chip Whistler in Disney’s Big City Greens. Away from his acting work, Scheer also co-hosts two film discussion podcasts: How Did This Get Made?, alongside his wife June Diane Raphael and longtime collaborator Jason Mantzoukas, and Unspooled with film critic Amy Nicholson. Scheer is the author of a memoir, Joyful Recollections of Trauma, which was published by HarperCollins in May 2024, and became a New York Times Bestseller.
Scheer was born in Huntington, New York, to Gail Ann (Decarlo) and William Paul Scheer. Scheer attended Catholic schools during his childhood and graduated from St. Anthony's High School. Scheer began performing in high school with Chicago City Limits, a New York-based short-form improv group. He later attended New York University, where he majored in communication and education. Scheer often speaks about his early life on the How Did This Get Made? podcast.
In 1995, Scheer became a member of New York City's longest-running Off-Broadway comedy show, Chicago City Limits. As a member of their touring company, Scheer extensively traveled throughout the United States and overseas. In 1998, while at NYU, Scheer started performing at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York City. Scheer performed in multiple weekly shows, including Talk Show, The Real Real World and the house team Respecto Montalban. The group included Rob Riggle, Rob Huebel, Jack McBrayer, and Dannah Feinglass. They performed long-form improvisation to sold-out crowds every Saturday night for over five years and starred in a political sketch comedy show called George Bush is a Motherfucker. In 2002, Scheer created and starred in Automatic Vaudeville at the Ars Nova theater, which The Hollywood Reporter called "one of the top five shows in the country". In 2006, Scheer moved to Los Angeles and has been a regular performer at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Los Angeles (UCBTLA). He performed an improvised show based on audience members' Facebook profiles called FACEBOOK. The show was named the "Best Improv Show" by Los Angeles magazine and has been profiled on Good Morning America. Cast members include McBrayer, Riggle, and Huebel.
In 2003, Scheer was hired as a writer and performer for Oxygen’s Meow TV. Meow TV was a project by Meow Mix that aired programming for cats and their owners.
From 2004 to the conclusion of the show’s first run in 2009, Scheer was a regular cast member on VH1’s Best Week Ever. Scheer was selected to be part of a live tour featuring comedians from the show in 2005. Other panelists included Nick Kroll, John Mulaney, and Patton Oswalt.
In 2005, Scheer began collaborating with comedians Rob Huebel, Aziz Ansari, and Jason Woliner on short films. Their first videos were Shutterbugs and Illusionators. Shutterbugs saw Huebel and Ansari play talent agents for child actors, and llusionators, starred Ansari and Scheer as Criss Angel-style magicians. In mid-2006, MTV greenlit a sketch series from the trio, called Human Giant. The series debuted April 5, 2007, and ran for two seasons from 2007 to 2008, exploring comedic aspects of modern life and pop culture.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
